Poker Smash hits Xbox Live Arcade on Wednesday

Microsoft announced today that Poker Smash will be hitting Xbox Live arcade this Wednesday. The game will set you back 800 points and features a solid mix of action and poker hands. The game has you creating poker hands from cards as they crawl up the screen. If the cards reach the top of the screen then the game ends. You have a few tools on your hands though as you can slow down/speed up the rate of the cards as well as a limited selection of bombs that you can use to take cards out with.

I have the chance to play the game a bit and it's a pretty solid little game. It takes a little bit of getting used to (especially for a Poker n00b like me) but once you get the hang of the game it's a ton of fun. If you remotely like card games or puzzle scrollers then you should check it out when it hits XBLA this week.

Newcomer Void Star Creations, an Independent developer based in South Carolina, takes the puzzle game genre to a whole new level with “Poker Smash,” an action packed puzzler with a poker twist! In “Poker Smash,” players rush to clear rows of cards by arranging them into poker hands. To keep things interesting “Poker Smash” offers card-blasting bombs and a super slow-motion trigger for players caught in a bind.

The game features over 30 minutes of original music set against stunning visuals, and contains seven unique game modes, including: action, timed, puzzle, practice, custom playlist, split screen head-to-head and multiplayer tournaments. Casual and hardcore gamers alike won’t want to miss this highly polished addition to Xbox LIVE Arcade.

For the Achievement junkies, “Poker Smash” contains 12 Achievements with a total of 200 points, including: “Score of the Gods,” which requires gamers to reach 1,000,000 points; “The Thinker,” which requires gamers to unlock all puzzle groups; and “Pack Rat,” which is awarded after gamers unlock all 11 in-game themes.

To celebrate the launch of “Poker Smash” on Xbox LIVE Arcade, players will have the opportunity to participate in the “Poker Smash” Play & Win Sweepstakes, where one lucky grand prize winner will receive an Xbox 360 Elite console! Plus, four other winners will be selected to receive Microsoft Point cards. To be automatically entered into the sweepstakes, simply download and play the full or trial version of “Poker Smash” from Wednesday, February 6 at 8:00 a.m. GMT (12:00 a.m. PST on Tuesday, February 5) through Thursday, February 14 at 7:59 a.m. (11:59 p.m. PST on Wednesday, February 13). This sweepstakes is available in the US and Canada only. For complete sweepstakes rules, please visit: